Copley Township Democratic Rep. Betty Sutton held a town hall meeting on health care last month, before concerted disruption efforts began. After outbursts at health care meetings around the country were publicized, Sutton said many constituents told her they wouldn’t attend such a meeting because “they would fear for their safety.”
“We are trying to figure out how we can best address concerns and questions and hear from constituents in a way that is civil and productive,” said Sutton, a member of the committee that drafted the most widely publicized House health care reform bill. She says most of the people she talks to are just trying to figure out what’s in the bill and how it would affect them.
“I have meetings every day,” Sutton said. “I talk to people.”